Rice: Iraq trained al Qaeda in chemical weapons

[igloo]

Rice: Iraq trained al Qaeda in chemical weapons

Thursday, September 26, 2002 Posted: 10:12 AM EDT (1412 GMT)

Iraqi officials have repeatedly denied having links to al Qaeda terrorists.

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- President Bush's national security adviser Wednesday said Saddam Hussein has sheltered al Qaeda terrorists in Baghdad and helped train some in chemical weapons development -- information she said has been gleaned from captives in the ongoing war on terrorism.

The comments by Condoleezza Rice were the strongest and most specific to date on the White House's accusations linking al Qaeda and Iraq.

The accusations followed those made by President Bush and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, who earlier in the day said the United States has evidence linking Iraq and al Qaeda, but they did not elaborate. And the charges came as the White House sought to dispel accusations by Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, who blasted the administration for an "outrageous" effort to seek political gain from the Iraq debate.

Meanwhile, President Bush will meet with House Democrats and Republicans this morning at the White House to specifically discuss Iraq. Bush is expected to speak in the Rose Garden immediately following the meeting.

In an interview with PBS' "The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer," Rice said the U.S. government clearly knows "that there were in the past and have been contacts between senior Iraqi officials and members of al Qaeda going back for actually quite a long time."

"We know too that several of the detainees, in particular some high-ranking detainees, have said that Iraq provided some training to al Qaeda in chemical weapons development," Rice said.

"There clearly are contacts between al Qaeda and Iraq that can be documented," Condoleezza Rice said Wednesday in a PBS interview.

"So, yes, there are contacts between Iraq and al Qaeda. We know that Saddam Hussein has a long history with terrorism in general. And there are some al Qaeda personnel who found refuge in Baghdad," she said. "There clearly are contacts between al Qaeda and Iraq that can be documented."

At the same time, she cautioned that "no one is trying to make an argument at this point that Saddam Hussein somehow had operational control of what happened on September 11th, so we don't want to push this too far."

Rice added: "This is a story that is unfolding, and it is getting clear, and we're learning more. ... When the picture is clear, we'll make full disclosure about it."

With the administration trying to build support at the United Nations and in Congress for possible military action against Iraq, the White House in recent days has sought to place its push to depose Saddam in the context of the war on terrorism, warning that Iraq could give nuclear, biological or chemical weapons to terrorist groups like al Qaeda -- the group responsible for the deaths of more than 3,000 Americans in four attacks September 11, 2001.

Bush Wednesday warned that al Qaeda could become "an extension of Saddam's madness."

"Both of them need to be dealt with," Bush told reporters at the White House. "You can't distinguish between al Qaeda and Saddam when you talk about the war on terror."

Seeking to fend off criticism from Democrats, he called the Iraq issue "a legitimate national security concern."

"I view it as my main obligation -- that is to protect the American people," he said.

Speaking in Poland, Rumsfeld said U.S. officials shared information linking Iraq and al Qaeda with NATO defense ministers meeting in Warsaw.

"The deputy director of central intelligence briefed on that subject. I have no desire to go beyond saying the answer is yes," Rumsfeld told reporters.

Daschle blasts White House

Daschle accused the White House of exploiting the threat of war with Iraq for political gain and demanded that Bush apologize.

"We've got to rise to a higher level," Daschle said. "Our founding fathers would be embarrassed by what they are seeing going on right now. Those who died gave their lives for better than what we're giving now." (Full story)

Rumsfeld told the allies that Bush has made no decision on whether to attack, but argued that a decade of sanctions and occasional aerial bombardment has failed to deter Iraq from attempting to develop weapons of mass destruction.

"Everyone is on notice," he said. "All now have a clear understanding of the threats that are posed."

The White House quickly dismissed the demand for Bush to apologize.

Asked by reporters at the White House whether he was politicizing the war, Bush responded, "My job is to protect the American people."

At a fund-raising dinner later Wednesday evening for the National Republican Senatorial Committee, the president seemed to respond to Daschle's comments.

"Unfortunately, some senators -- not all senators -- but some senators believe it is best to micromanage the process, believe the best way to secure the homeland is to have a thick book of regulations which will hamstring this administration and future administrations from dealing with an enemy that could care less about thick books of regulations," Bush said.

"Unfortunately, some in the Senate -- not all in the Senate -- want to take away the power that all presidents have had since Jimmy Carter, and I'm not going to stand for it."

"The Senate must hear this, because the American people understand it -- they should not respond to special interests in Washington, D.C. They ought to respond to this interest: protecting the American people from future attacks," he added.

In the PBS interview, Rice said, "The president has never politicized this concern about war and the national security of the American people."

[dnice35]

Even more reason to go into Iraq. Don't you think?

[deepak1977]

Originally posted by igloo

The accusations followed those made by President Bush and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, who earlier in the day said the United States has evidence linking Iraq and al Qaeda, but they did not elaborate. And the charges came as the White House sought to dispel accusations by Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, who blasted the administration for an "outrageous" effort to seek political gain from the Iraq debate.

of course they cannot elaborate on it, because there is nothing to elaborate on. whenever the bush administration says they have proof that iraq has links to al-qaida, it ends up turning to be false. if they did have real evidence, then why not share it with the un? most european nations are willing to help if the us shows the evidence.

anybody who knows anything about saddam hussien, is that he will do whatever it takes to stay alive and in power. saddam is so concerned with staying in power that he has even killed his own son-in-law on charges of treason. joining forces with al-qaida would be suicide for him, because if al-qaida has it's way, saddam's baath party would be abolished and a caliphate would be established in iraq. the baath party is a pan-arab socialistic party(syria is also led by the baath party), it is secular, saddam even has christians among his rankings. all of this is scene as haram(sinful) to bin ladin and his followers. in fact al-qaida has been known with collaborating with kurdish militants, who may take over if a "regime change" occurs. one must love the possible irony of al-qaida supported militants take over iraq(or a kurdish state) with the help of americans invading iraq.

the "enemy of my enemy is my friend" philosophy does not work here, especially when it comes to dictators and zealots. bin ladin and hussein are men who are guided by their beliefs, neither of them is willing enough to compromise their beliefs to join forces and fight the us.

[djxeno]

Good post!

[bigpoppanils]

we gave iraq biological material in the mid 1980's for their bio-weapons program

should we bomb ourselves then?

[kramadas]

n

[kramadas]

Originally posted by deepak1977

of course they cannot elaborate on it, because there is nothing to elaborate on. whenever the bush administration says they have proof that iraq has links to al-qaida, it ends up turning to be false. if they did have real evidence, then why not share it with the un? most european nations are willing to help if the us shows the evidence.

anybody who knows anything about saddam hussien, is that he will do whatever it takes to stay alive and in power. saddam is so concerned with staying in power that he has even killed his own son-in-law on charges of treason. joining forces with al-qaida would be suicide for him, because if al-qaida has it's way, saddam's baath party would be abolished and a caliphate would be established in iraq. the baath party is a pan-arab socialistic party(syria is also led by the baath party), it is secular, saddam even has christians among his rankings. all of this is scene as haram(sinful) to bin ladin and his followers. in fact al-qaida has been known with collaborating with kurdish militants, who may take over if a "regime change" occurs. one must love the possible irony of al-qaida supported militants take over iraq(or a kurdish state) with the help of americans invading iraq.

the "enemy of my enemy is my friend" philosophy does not work here, especially when it comes to dictators and zealots. bin ladin and hussein are men who are guided by their beliefs, neither of them is willing enough to compromise their beliefs to join forces and fight the us.

Great points! Unfortunately, there are many on this board that are very ignorant about affairs in the middle east and just swallow up whatever the media feeds them!

And thats exactly whom Bush targets his speeches to...the ignorant masses (that is, assuming he even knows anything...being the fool he is, I wouldn't be surprised if he didn't).

[bigmahs]

Originally posted by raver_mania

Great points! Unfortunately, there are many on this board that are very ignorant about affairs in the middle east and just swallow up whatever the media feeds them!

And thats exactly whom Bush targets his speeches to...the ignorant masses (that is, assuming he even knows anything...being the fool he is, I wouldn't be surprised if he didn't).

Ok,

The media why do you think everything you see is a lie. Maybe 40 years ago before the internet and other ways of communicating information to the masses but today I doubt it. Do some television stations lean more to the right or left yes but lies I highly doubt it

Now President bush remark do you dilike him because he is a republican? It seems that lefties bash him just to bash him on no merits. Let's take your complaint his grammer. He messed up once in the beginning what you have never been nervous addressing a country of 300 millions people???

[kramadas]

Originally posted by bigmahs

Ok,

The media why do you think everything you see is a lie. Maybe 40 years ago before the internet and other ways of communicating information to the masses but today I doubt it. Do some television stations lean more to the right or left yes but lies I highly doubt it

Now President bush remark do you dilike him because he is a republican? It seems that lefties bash him just to bash him on no merits. Let's take your complaint his grammer. He messed up once in the beginning what you have never been nervous addressing a country of 300 millions people???

There's a very THICK book called "Bushisms". I recommend you read that...I hear there's a part 2 out too. Messing up once or twice is fine, but...two whole books worth?!?!

I'm not saying everything the media tells is a lie, I'm saying they bend the truth to suit their purposes/views. Also, NOT reporting crucial facts that might sway an argument the other way is something news reporting agencies are wonderful at.

For example, saying Saddam is evil and a Muslim so he's gonna help Al Queda is what everyone in the US administration is saying. Now, do they report anything about the actual Iraqi regime and how Al Queda members have been found IN THE NORTHERN KURDISH regions (ie, the areas that Saddam does not control, but controlled by the Kurdish OPPOSITION).

No, they report that Al Queda had been found in Iraq, thus leading most ppl who don't know anything about Iraq to believe Saddam is sheltering Al Queda. So, what you have is not a lie, but a truth said in such a manner as to sway public opinion a certain direction.

Most Americans still believe that Saddam is a religous zealot...now isn't that a laugh!

[dnice35]

Originally posted by raver_mania

There's a very THICK book called "Bushisms". I recommend you read that...I hear there's a part 2 out too. Messing up once or twice is fine, but...two whole books worth?!?!

I'm not saying everything the media tells is a lie, I'm saying they bend the truth to suit their purposes/views. Also, NOT reporting crucial facts that might sway an argument the other way is something news reporting agencies are wonderful at.

For example, saying Saddam is evil and a Muslim so he's gonna help Al Queda is what everyone in the US administration is saying. Now, do they report anything about the actual Iraqi regime and how Al Queda members have been found IN THE NORTHERN KURDISH regions (ie, the areas that Saddam does not control, but controlled by the Kurdish OPPOSITION).

No, they report that Al Queda had been found in Iraq, thus leading most ppl who don't know anything about Iraq to believe Saddam is sheltering Al Queda. So, what you have is not a lie, but a truth said in such a manner as to sway public opinion a certain direction.

Most Americans still believe that Saddam is a religous zealot...now isn't that a laugh!

Saddam is not a religious freak, he is just a murderous thug. And we have to deal with him before he blows his last gasket.

And yes maybe the media stretches the thruth just a tad, but hey if they stretch it one way. then its stretched the other way as well. So who do you believe? well thats were beliefs come into play. Personally no one will change where I stand in this issue. You can post your argument, but my position stands! NO MORE SADDAM! and we can take Arafat out while we are it, that would be great too .....

[kramadas]

Originally posted by dnice35

Saddam is not a religious freak, he is just a murderous thug. And we have to deal with him before he blows his last gasket.

And yes maybe the media stretches the thruth just a tad, but hey if they stretch it one way. then its stretched the other way as well. So who do you believe? well thats were beliefs come into play. Personally no one will change where I stand in this issue. You can post your argument, but my position stands! NO MORE SADDAM! and we can take Arafat out while we are it, that would be great too .....

Thats exactly the mentally I'm against... the "we can take out anyone we want to" mentality.

Its this self appointed police role the US takes thats going to lead it into a lot of trouble...thanks to a belligerent, crass, and dumb leader.

[asianvixen]

Originally posted by raver_mania

There's a very THICK book called "Bushisms".

NOTE: To the best of our knowledge, these are all real quotes. If you have a "Bushism" you would like to send us, we will require a legitimate source. We also have not censored any quotes here, and there is profanity on this page. If profanity offends you, please scroll all the way down.

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"We need to understand if you let kindling build up and there's a lightning strike, you're going get yourself a big fire," - G.W. Bush in a lame attempt to make deforestation look like a way to stop forest fires, - Aug 22, 2002

"I know in the fall of an election year, the tendency is to focus more on scoring political points than on making progress." - G.W. Bush after a golf game with Bush Sr. and preparing to go on a GOP fundraiser. Kennebunkport, Maine. -August 3rd, 2002

"Sometimes things aren't exactly black and white when it comes to accounting procedures ... I still haven't figured it out completely." - Bush when asked for details about his dealings with Harken Energy Corp., of which he was on the audit committee. G.W. Bush's father was in office in 1990 when he sold his Harken stock and the SEC did not pursue a case. -July 8th, 2002

"Do you have blacks too?" - Bush ignorantly asked Brazil's President Fernando Henrique Cardoso. Reported by the reputable German publication Der Spiegel. Rumor has it, Condoleza Rice interupted the president and explained in brief the African history in Brazil.

"Washington is unfortunately the kind of place where second-guessing has become second nature," - G.W. Bush responding to suggestions he had warnings of September 11th before the attacks. Washington D.C., May 17th, 2002

"After all, a week ago, there were — Yasser Arafat was boarded up in his building in Ramallah, a building full of, evidently, German peace protestors and all kinds of people. They're now out. He's now free to show leadership, to lead the world." - G.W. Bush. Washington D.C., May 2nd, 2002

"This foreign policy stuff is a little frustrating." - G.W. Bush as quoted by the New York Daily News, April 23rd, 2002

"I've got a tool, and that's called a veto" - G.W. Bush regarding working with congress on the budget. Washington Post, April 17th, 2002

"And so, in my State of the -- my State of the Union -- or state -- my speech to the nation, whatever you want to call it, speech to the nation -- I asked Americans to give 4,000 years --4,000 hours over the next -- the rest of your life -- of service to America."" - G.W. Bush. April 9th, 2002. Reported by the San Francisco Gate (among others)

"I made up my mind that Saddam needs to go,"- G.W. Bush to British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, April 5th, 2002

"Sometimes when I sleep at night I think of 'Hop on Pop."- G.W. Bush speaking on educating children, April 2nd, 2002

"There's nothing more deep than recognizing Israel's right to exist. That's the most deep thought of all. ... I can't think of anything more deep than that right."-March 13th, 2000, Washington, D.C.

"I understand that the unrest in the Middle East creates unrest throughout the region."-March 13th, 2000, Washington, D.C.

"{waves hello}"- G.W. Bush waves to the blind musician, Stevie Wonder, as reported by the Washington Post, March 6th, 2002

"It also makes sense for New York State to have a governor whose phone calls will be returned from the White House." -February 2002, at a fundraiser for New York's Republican governor, George Pataki.

"It's an encroachment on the executive branch's ability to conduct business," —Regarding Enron, January 28th, 2002

"Mother, I should have listened to you. Always chew your pretzels before you swallow." —January 14th, 2002

"Not over my dead body will they raise your taxes!" —January 11th, 2002

"This is not an instant gratification war" —November 2nd, 2001

"I am here to make an announcement that this Thursday, ticket counters and airplanes will fly out of Ronald Reagan airport." —October 3rd, 2001 at Reagan International Airport in Washington, D.C.

"When I take action, I'm not going to fire a $2 million missile at a $10 empty tent and hit a camel in the butt. It's going to be decisive."—September 19th, 2001

''I know what I believe. I will continue to articulate what I believe and what I believe—I believe what I believe is right."—Rome, July 22, 2001

"It's my honor to speak to you as the leader of your country. And the great thing about America is you don't have to listen unless you want to." — Speaking to recently sworn in immigrants on Ellis Island, July 10, 2001

"Well, it's an unimaginable honor to be the president during the Fourth of July of this country. It means what these words say, for starters. The great inalienable rights of our country. We're blessed with such values in America. And I--it's--I'm a proud man to be the nation based upon such wonderful values."—Visiting the Jefferson Memorial, Washington, D.C., July 2, 2001

"We spent a lot of time talking about Africa, as we should. Africa is a nation that suffers from incredible disease."—Gothenburg, Sweden, June 14, 2001

''I had no idea we had so many weapons, ...what do we need them for?'' — George W. Bush, stunned when told the extent of the U.S. nuclear arsenal, Newsweek, June 25, 2001

"If a person doesn't have the capacity that we all want that person to have, I suspect hope is in the far distant future, if at all."—Remarks to the Hispanic Scholarship Fund Institute, Washington, D.C., May 22, 2001

"For every fatal shooting, there were roughly three non-fatal shootings. And, folks, this is unacceptable in America. It's just unacceptable. And we're going to do something about it."—Philadelphia, May 14, 2001

"There's no question that the minute I got elected, the storm clouds on the horizon were getting nearly directly overhead." - Washington, D.C., May 11, 2001

"It's a school full of so-called at-risk children. It's how we, unfortunately, label certain children. It means basically they can't learn. ... It's one of the best schools in Houston." —George W. Bush speaking about KIPP Academy in Houston, Texas.

"Whatever it took to help Taiwan defend theirself."—On how far we'd be willing to go to defend Taiwan, Good Morning America, April 25, 2001

"First, we would not accept a treaty that would not have been ratified, nor a treaty that I thought made sense for the country." —George W. Bush, on the Kyoto accord, April 24, 2001

"I've coined new words, like, misunderstanding and Hispanically." —George W. Bush, who meant to say "misunderestimated"

"They misunderestimated me."—Bentonville, Ark., Nov. 6, 2000

"I know how hard it is for you to put food on your family."—Greater Nashua, N.H., Chamber of Commerce, Jan. 27, 2000

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"It's clearly a budget. It's got a lot of numbers in it."--Reuters, May 5, 2000

"Rarely is the question asked: Is our children learning?"-Florence, S.C., Jan. 11, 2000

"I understand small business growth. I was one."-New York Daily News, Feb. 19, 2000

"The most important job is not to be governor, or first lady in my case."-Pella, Iowa, as quoted by the San Antonio Express-News, Jan. 30, 2000

"It's important for us to explain to our nation that life is important. It's not only life of babies, but it's life of children living in, you know, the dark dungeons of the Internet."—Arlington Heights, Ill., Oct. 24, 2000

"I think if you know what you believe, it makes it a lot easier to answer questions. I can't answer your question."—Reynoldsburg, Ohio, Oct. 4, 2000

"Natural gas is hemispheric. I like to call it hemispheric in nature because it is a product that we can find in our neighborhoods."—Austin, Texas, Dec. 20, 2000

"The senator [McCain] has got to understand if he's going to have—he can't have it both ways. He can't take the high horse and then claim the low road."—To reporters in Florence, S.C., Feb. 17, 2000

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"There ought to be limits to freedom. We're aware of this [web] site, and this guy is just a garbage man, that's all he is." --George Jr., discussing a web site that parodies him (YIKES!)

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"You fucking son of a bitch. I saw what you wrote. We're not going to forget this." —George W. Bush to writer and editor Al Hunt, 1988

[dnice35]

Originally posted by raver_mania

Thats exactly the mentally I'm against... the "we can take out anyone we want to" mentality.

Its this self appointed police role the US takes thats going to lead it into a lot of trouble...thanks to a belligerent, crass, and dumb leader.

Yes we are a force to be wreckened with and we can take on the world if we wanted to. would you preffer someone else be the top millitary power? maybe Iraq or Rusia, remember not too long ago Rusia would have made us their bitch and Im sure if we werent the world power we are now alot of countries would luv to see the US go down.

[kramadas]

Originally posted by dnice35

Yes we are a force to be wreckened with and we can take on the world if we wanted to. would you preffer someone else be the top millitary power? maybe Iraq or Rusia, remember not too long ago Rusia would have made us their bitch and Im sure if we werent the world power we are now alot of countries would luv to see the US go down.

Checks and balances...you need a "world council" if you will. Bush can't just go in and attack any country he wants to, and try suppress the military development of other nations. That, my dear boy, borders on imperialism, and we ALL know that imperialistic-nations/empires fall at some point.

The reason so many people want to see the US go down is because of its foreign policy...its not a random idea they suddenly decided to come up with. And Israel is really sore issue. The US is the farthest thing from impartial when it comes to Israel.